Abstract:

It is important to analyse the word contest, known as the call-and-response in Türkiye and the aitys in Kazakhstan, as it is the common culture of both countries. The tradition of minstrelsy/aitys, which was inscribed in the “Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity” of UNESCO, has been studied separately and in many ways in Türkiye and Kazakhstan since the beginning of the 20th century. In addition, comparative studies conducted by researchers such as Metin Ergun, Bekir Şişman and Nergis Biray started from the 1990s and continued until 2003. It is important to carry out such studies today. In this article, it is aimed to comparatively evaluate the current situation of minstrel tradition/aitys in Türkiye and Kazakhstan. Within the scope of the study, field research was conducted using observation and interview technique in a total of six provinces, in five provinces of Türkiye in 2022 and in one province in the first month of 2023. In addition, the akıns organized in Kazakhstan in 2022 were also followed. Based on the data obtained, the current status of minstrel tradition/aitys in Türkiye and Kazakhstan, the current number of minstrels in both countries, the programs organized and the performances of the minstrels were evaluated under three categories. The similarities, differences and geographical features in both countries are discussed. For the number of Anatolian minstrels, The statistical data of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the information on the website of the The Project Dictionary of Names in Turkish Literature and the theses made on this subject were used. For the current number of Kazakh programs, the number of masters of speech who are members of the International Aitys minstrels and Poet-Epicists Union and who are known as Akın, even though they are not members, has been determined. As a result, it has been determined that there are 721 minstrels living today in Türkiye and 2.7% of them are female minstrels, while in Kazakhstan there are 370 minstrels and 20% of them are women. Türkiye’s youngest minstrel is 21 years old and an undergraduate student. Kazakhstan’s youth minstrels are 11 years old and 5th grade students in secondary school. At the same time, it is understood that there are three minstrels in Türkiye and more than thirty in Kazakhstan. When compared, there are similarities and differences in the arrangement of the minstrel’s programs in both countries. One of the common elements is that the call-and-response duets was held in fairs in the 20th century. The unique feature of Anatolia is that the minstrels’ event turns into a traditional holiday held regularly under the same title and is rewarded with symbolic gifts. The peculiarity of the events in Kazakhstan is that the akıns of the aitys are organized separately at three levels according to their age: middle school-high school students, youth and general aitys, and incentives are given to successful minstrels in exchange for a car or 1.000 to 5.000 US Dollars. In addition, support by state institutions and businessmen made aitys more popular in Kazakh society. According to the results of the field research and evaluation, the performances of the minstrels on the stage were determined as the most basic similarities of the tradition in Türkiye and Kazakhstan. In other words, it was seen that the poets of both countries performed their art alone on the stage and two or more people had a quarrel. It is clear that poets sang with or without musical instruments and used other musical instruments besides baglama/dombira. It was also revealed that in both countries the ability of poets to recite extemporaneously was tested. The comparative study will contribute to the exchange of ideas between Anatolian and Kazakh minstrels and the further development of the tradition.

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